Minnie, a Mini-Alpine dairy goat, and Maxine, one of the family's six laying hens, share a watermelon.

Tracy, Sebastian and Oliver Montgomery work a tiny backyard farm at their Oak Cliff house. Their hens and chicks are the reason for Saturday's coop tour, but the dairy goats are likely to steal the show.

Peter, a 2-month-old Mini-Alpine dairy goat, checks out the henhouse. His lodgings, to the left, had an air conditioner installed this past summer.

Oliver Montgomery, 3, loves the hens, says his mother. One of his farm chores every day is to collect the fresh-laid eggs.

Tracy, 37, delights in having farm-fresh eggs for meals and for baking.

Oliver Montgomery, 3, learns how to hold a 6-day-old chick. "We thought it was important for Oliver to know how to take care of animals and know where his food comes from," his dad says.

Lucy, a Mini-LaMancha dairy goat, exercises on the goat bridge.

Thelma, a Barred Rock hen, on her roost.

Oliver Montgomery, 3, plays with Trixie, a Black Sumatra hen, at his home in Oak Cliff.

Sebastian, 34, learned how to milk a goat after intense bouts of online research. He calls himself the family milkmaid.

Mango, an Ameraucana hen, lays blue eggs. The Montgomerys have been careful to make a distinction to their son between the broilers and the laying hens, who have names and who are accustomed to being swept up by Oliver for a hug. Oliver has learned to refer to the broiler chicks as "our meat birds."

Spinach-and-goat-cheese quiche and chevre were made from the animals and plants at the Montgomery's "little farm in Big D" in Oak Cliff.

Tracy Montgomery grooms Peter, a 2-month-old kid. After the newspaper photos were taken, the couple sold the two kids on craigslist. Tracy and son Oliver cried when the baby goats were taken away.

Tracy, Oliver and Sebastian Montgomery discuss the names of leafy green vegetables in their Oak Cliff backyard. Sebastian plans to make sauerkraut from the cabbage.

Sebastian had to learn how to disbud the nubs of horns on baby goats' skulls so they will never develop and, when the time comes, he will have studied how to "process" the Cornish Cross pullets for the freezer.